Surefire L5 owners...speak out!

I have one. It is by far my favorite light i've ever owned. It's a perfect balance of flood and throw. It works great for up close tasks but can throw quite a decent distance when needed. It's not quite as floody as an L2 or L4 and won't throw as far as a KL3 but it covers all my lighting needs nicely and is the perfect compromise.

I've had two and the current one is by far my go-to light when I'm headed out to do some serious torching. The runtime is great for me, especially on RCRs and it has more of a wide-angle beam than my 27mm lights. It doesn't get hot like the L4s tend to do either. Mine wears a lanyard and a SWO1 tailcap for easy one-handedness if I'm carrying a pistol or unlocking doors or whatever. If someone were to leave me with only one light (Heaven Forbid) this is the one!

When I first got mine I was very impressed, I still like it however I now have a KL4 as well as the L6 so the L5 is kind of in between. I also have the KL3 well 3 of them 2 of the older version (one of them modded by Chop) and a newer version. I like the L5 better than the KL3's it has more flood and good throw. Not sure that helps you to decide.
Topper

CasualFlashlight:

Like AFultz and Danintex said, the L5 does it all. It is one great light: rugged, balanced Throw + Flood, beautiful white beam.

It seems to get 2 criticisms:

1. That its beam has a typical Lux-V "donut" and/or the usual "LED lottery" tint issues. This is only apparent to White Wall Hunters. Outside, this is invisible and irrelevant. It's a true Real World light.

2. That it's a "battery-eater." This is all dependant upon one's expectations. Most get at least one hour of astonishing, well-balanced light from an L5... with another 20 min of declining but very useful "tail" light (the later much like the old/Gen-1 KL3 head flooder). However, I believe the L5 is a high-drain light and must be fed good quality batteries (i.e., Duracell, Sanyo, Surefire). Chinese cheapies may not run it well.

I've personally decided that our lives/safety are worth the additional 20 bucks in annual CR123 battercosts the L5 may ring up (vs. some lesser light). But then, I also load my self-defense guns with the best ammunition I can buy because this ain't where Street-Smart Survivors pinch pennies. YMMV.

As Topper implies, you can always get a KL3 head (new version) for your L5 if ya wanta go for more throw. However, I doubt you'll need it unless you want to light up lions/tigers/muggers at 100 yards.

Maybe the reason the L5 gets so little discussion is that it preempts so many other flashlights. OTOH, to arrive at this conclusion, you first gotta buy and try a dozen other lights to ultimately appreciate the L5. Maybe that's what our never-ending CPF journey is all about!

While I habitually EDC smaller keychain lights like an Arc/Peak/Fenix P1, and a SF E2L in a trouser pocket, the L5 is inevitably the one I reach for when I undertake serious-purpose tasks like night-walks... or investigating those bumps-in-the-night. I heartily recommend it.

Regarding #2 above. Use a 17650, or 17670 LiIon battery to power the L5 and you will have very good runtime, in regulation. Carry CR123 batteries for backup. I opted for an 18650 body, and get 2 hours of solid regulation. Lighthound has good prices on KL5's, and you could have a two cell Surefire body bored out to fit the larger 18650, or find a TranquillityBase 18650 on BST.

Bill

I would echo what's already been said. I really like the L5. I run mine on 17650s and it gives good runtime. I also agree that many people "go through" a number of lights before they finally arrive at the L5. You will not be disappointed with it.

My L5 has a slight donut (which equates to a perfectly aligned die and reflector) and a warmish tint. It is GREAT for night hiikes and geocaches. It has a wonderful balance of throw and spill, rugged as Hell, and when I run 17670s it runs and runs in regulation. It isn't a wall hunter's dream. It is a wonderful, KISS tool for outdoors use. Of all my lights, if my life hinged on using one light in my collection it would be my L5.

The Surefire L5 is one of my favorite lights, too.

The L5 is one of a handful of flashlight models that I had, sold, and then purchased again after I realized that nothing could replace it. (The other two were the Surefire L4 and the Inova T3/X03.) In this case, the newer L5 that I have is much better than my old one that I owned 2 years ago, mainly due its brighter and warmer Luxeon. Part of this is the luck of the draw, but average Luxeon bins have been improving steadily.

I use Pila Li-ion cells almost exclusively. One of the strengths of Surefire LED lights is that they can use a Li-ion replacement for 2x123A without any penalty in brightness.

I bored out my L5 body to fit the 18650 battery, and I got over one thousand hours of used on my L5, now I just got another KL5 with an WWOS Lux.

So the consensus is that the KL3 has better throw? I was thinking about a KL5 for better distance, used looking for run-offs and winter injury accidents on duty. I currently carry an e2e+KL1 and 6P+KL3 and was looking for a bit more throw...

resq47- can i ask what you do for a living?

Resq47, the L5 (or KL5 on a 2/3 cell SF) is a great light, but it won't out-throw your KL3.

You may need to move from an LED to a big incan like a Streamlight SL-20 or Stinger series, or a Mag-Charger. Check the Throw charts at FlashlightReviews.com for guidance here.

benchmade_boy said:

resq47- can i ask what you do for a living?

Click to expand...

Sure, I'm a medic on an echo unit (solo truck) working 1900-0700.

I *had* been using a standard 6P until I was corrupted by RCR123's and 17670's (right?) with the KL1/KL3 heads. Incans are nice if there's cubic money around for cells, but they're a bit on the useless side if they won't last through an extended extrication (1+ hr) or a full night of 'sporty' calls.

TonkinWarrior said:

Resq47, the L5 (or KL5 on a 2/3 cell SF) is a great light, but it won't out-throw your KL3.

You may need to move from an LED to a big incan like a Streamlight SL-20 or Stinger series, or a Mag-Charger. Check the Throw charts at FlashlightReviews.com for guidance here.

Click to expand...

Yep, I've been over the FR charts enough to wear a groove in them. I have an old stinger XT that I used to like, it needs a bulb badly (yellowed), but I'm not so hot on Nicads. We issue 2/3D Mags, I guess I'll try the MagLED and pull alkalines from stock as needed...

I was really hoping the KL5 would justify its expense with greater distance. Maybe someday there will be a TIR gen.

I love the KL5 head but I put it on a L4 body so I can clip inside my pants pocket. It is top heavy in this configuration but not unmanageable.

Resq47 said:

Sure, I'm a medic on an echo unit (solo truck) working 1900-0700.

Click to expand...

cool i was wondering cuz it sounded like you mite be a emt, also i am ging to go to college to ether be a flight nurse or a paramedic.but first i have to get out of High School, hey if it helps my local surefire dealer manley sells to parmedics and one of them are her son and the on almost all of them like is the surefire L5.

The L5 is the best best light!
Very impressively bright with a splendid throw.
Beam pattern is user friendly wide, slight donut does not bother me a bit.
If i only have 1 light, it will be the L5.

*Just found out it beats my $$U2$$ hands down, very disappointed about the U2~! (I dont care about the variable brightness settings)